I was horrified how tree surgeons reduce poplars (mine are now ridiculously tall) but oddly my vet has a whole line which were cut down to about eight feet last year, and cropped of all branches. I was SURE they would die...but no....they're back, reaching for the skies. If you want them level in the long run I honestly would lop them down a few feet flat next Spring. Willows look utterly dire when this is done.....but they just grow back. And they might have a lot of shedding close to the trunks cos there's just not enough water. I was utterly stunned when a tree surgeon told me a willow the size mine used to be before it bit the biscuit drank 3,000 gallons of water a day. It wasn't getting that amount of water due to the poplars.......

Loadsa love

Last edited by Jan on 01 Jan 1970, 00:00, edited 0 times in total.
Reason:''

Arise anew as a child of the dawnRemember whence you cameWalk lightly, leaving whispers for footprintsAnd shine, refreshed in your rebirth

Jan wrote:I was horrified how tree surgeons reduce poplars (mine are now ridiculously tall) but oddly my vet has a whole line which were cut down to about eight feet last year, and cropped of all branches. I was SURE they would die...but no....they're back, reaching for the skies. If you want them level in the long run I honestly would lop them down a few feet flat next Spring. Willows look utterly dire when this is done.....but they just grow back. And they might have a lot of shedding close to the trunks cos there's just not enough water. I was utterly stunned when a tree surgeon told me a willow the size mine used to be before it bit the biscuit drank 3,000 gallons of water a day. It wasn't getting that amount of water due to the poplars.......

Loadsa love

Don't you know it, I was only in Faerie a couple of hours but coming back I find several days have passed...

Anyway. Just saying how clever plants are.

Many of my succulents (most of my gardening is indoors) are in flower - well, not many but a few feels like many, they're that dramatic and you do realise how clever these things are!

I will get someone to hack those thuja (thuya?!) then - if it doesn't work, I didn't want a hedge anyway and I don't mind if it's level.

(This is all assuming I stay in this house. Hm, againly... Maybe leave it one more year.. Could just take the forsythia back now, completely the wrong season but we can't get at the compost bin at the moment!)

Last edited by MandMaud on 01 Jan 1970, 00:00, edited 0 times in total.
Reason:''

MandMaud"The bird is struggling out of the egg. The egg is the world. Whoever wants to be born must first destroy a world." Hermann Hesse

Oh my. My first response is wrong tree(s) for the space. The tree is not happy, you are not happy. Keeping it pruned to the size you want sounds like a lot of work. This is radical, but you might want to get rid of the trees and find a plants,( bushes) that are native for your area.Find something that the maximum height is as high as you want and plant it. A younger plant will obviously be smaller at first, but it will grow and require lots less work on your part, and will be good for the wild life in the area. Since you enjoy feeding the birds, you could look for something that has berries and would also provide shelter.bright beams,gardenfaerie

Last edited by gardenfaerie on 01 Jan 1970, 00:00, edited 0 times in total.
Reason:''

gardenfaerie wrote:Oh my. My first response is wrong tree(s) for the space. The tree is not happy, you are not happy. Keeping it pruned to the size you want sounds like a lot of work. This is radical, but you might want to get rid of the trees and find a plants,( bushes) that are native for your area.Find something that the maximum height is as high as you want and plant it. A younger plant will obviously be smaller at first, but it will grow and require lots less work on your part, and will be good for the wild life in the area. Since you enjoy feeding the birds, you could look for something that has berries and would also provide shelter.bright beams,gardenfaerie

Thank you Gardenfaerie for your input - Over and over (every year, lol) I have thought about getting rid of these trees (there are 2) altogether, kind of needed 'permission' or someone else to tell me to! I do like them as trees, but would never have put them there myself.

I'll wait n see if I'm still in this house next year, and if so I now feel free to take action. Ooh, fun, choosing a new plant or plants. mm

Last edited by MandMaud on 01 Jan 1970, 00:00, edited 0 times in total.
Reason:''

MandMaud"The bird is struggling out of the egg. The egg is the world. Whoever wants to be born must first destroy a world." Hermann Hesse